THE unveiling of a new agriculture scheme, the Targeted Command Agriculture, is testimony the country’s leadership is looking forward to reviving the economy whose growth has been hampered by several anti-Zimbabwe factors and issues.
Already the initiative, which is a continuation of the revolutionary Land Reform and Resettlement Programme, has attracted the ire of old ghosts who have dismissed it as another failure in the offing.
But here is a programme that is expected to target farmers near water bodies who can put a minimum of 200 hectares under maize per farmer.
The programme aims to produce two million tonnes of maize on 400 000 hectares of land and will see identified farmers being given inputs, irrigation and mechanised equipment.
The farmers, who will work under strict supervision, will be required to commit five tonnes per hectare to Government as repayment for the inputs and agricultural equipment.
They will retain all surplus produced for personal use.
The scheme seeks to ensure maize self-sufficiency and will spread to other crops as transformative processes of the agriculture sector gain momentum.
Participating farmers would be required to sign a performance contract for three consecutive growing seasons commencing with the 2016-17 summer season.
Command Agriculture was born out of the realisation that national food insecurity had increased as a result of the El-Nino-induced drought.
To complement the food self-sufficiency thrust, Government has also introduced the National Livestock Strategy aimed at resuming beef exports to the European Union, Middle-East and other markets.
The initiative, which is being supervised by Vice-President Emmerson Mnangagwa, who is also the chairperson of the Cabinet Committee on Food Security and Nutrition, dovetails with President Robert Mugabe’s State of the Nation Address (SONA) last year in which he unveiled a 10-Point Plan to maintain economic growth anchored on reviving agriculture.
The first two plans of the SONA are important in the next four seasons that VP Mnangagwa identified as crucial to achieving food security.
These are:
l Revitalising agriculture and the agro-processing value chain.
l Advancing beneficiation and/or value-addition to our agricultural and mining resource endowment.
In the SONA, President Mugabe highlighted the negative impacts of climate change in the fight to attaining food security.
“In the 2014 to 2015 season, crop production was negatively affected by a combination of the late onset of rains and its uneven distribution, both consequences of climate change,” said President Mugabe.
“Consequently, the agricultural sector performance will be below expectation. Such a situation negatively impacts on the country’s overall economic growth.
“In line with our Food and Nutrition Policy thrust, Government, working closely with the private sector and development partners, has adopted a grain importation programme, even though, as we now discover from the volumes of maize sales to the Grain Marketing Board (GMB), our farmers did better than we had estimated.”
The Command Agriculture Programme has received widespread approbation from key stakeholders in the sector with fertiliser and maize seed producers assuring the Nation of adequate inputs for the forthcoming season to support the US$500 million programme.
To put a feather on the cap, funding negotiations for the scheme are almost complete and all that is left is to roll out the programme which will forever transform the agriculture sector and help Government efforts to turn around the country’s sanctions-battered economy.
Farmers’ unions, agrochemical dealers and officials from the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) have endorsed the programme which anchors the economic growth and development pillar.
In Government, VP Mnangagwa is being supported by Ministers Douglas Mombeshora (Lands and Rural Resettlement), Joseph Made (Agriculture, Mechanisation and Irrigation Development), Oppah Muchinguri-Kashiri (Environment, Water and Climate), Christopher Mushohwe (Information, Media and Broadcasting Services), Samuel Undenge (Energy and Power Development) and Mike Bimha (Industry and Commerce).
Minister Made said the scheme had been boosted by support from key stakeholders and everything was now in place to pursue the programme with vigour.
“The (maize) seed houses have 40 000 metric tonnes of seed for this season,” he said.
“In terms of what will be required for this programme and even beyond, the seed supply is fair.
“There will be adequate seed.
“The fertiliser companies have indicated they are sitting on 60 000 tonnes of top dressing fertilisers and are in the region of 40 000 of compound (D), which is sufficient enough to kick-start the programme.
“What is critical from what the fertilisers manufacturers have said is that they would like to be assisted in acquiring raw materials so that they speed up the manufacturing fertilisers.
“They manufacture fertilisers on a continual basis so they need certain raw materials in terms of constituting the fertilisers. Otherwise they are prepared.
“The companies expressed gratitude that this programme will see a stimulation of the economy because it’s the driving factor of the input suppliers who otherwise last season, because of the drought, were sitted (sic) with some stocks.
“With this programme they are able to push up their stocks.”
As the new farming season beckons, hopes for a better harvest and a developed Nation must sieze the farmers who have been engaged to carry out this crucial national assignment.
There is no doubt that Command Agriculture will boost this country’s economy.
Let those with ears listen.